Daily Herald (Illinois, U.S.): Mt. Prospect man's mom trapped in China (Photo)
(Clearwisdom.net)
January 11, 2003
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Photo courtesy of Zhiwei Xu |
A Mount Prospect man is trying to get his mother out of their native China, where he says she is being persecuted because she practices a form of meditation called Falun Gong.
Zhiwei Xu, a software specialist with Motorola in Schaumburg, says his mother is unable to leave the country on her own because Beijing authorities have confiscated her passport.
Both Xu and his mother practice Falun Gong, which he describes as a practice of refining the body and mind through exercise and meditation. The practice has been banned in China since 1999.
"I want to bring my mother here," Xu said. "I want her to be free of persecution."
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Xu's mother, 57-year-old Cui Zhang, started practicing Falun Gong in 1995. She was arrested in March 2000 and sent to a labor camp because of the practice, Xu said. She was released 10 days after joining a hunger strike, he said.
She was arrested again and jailed for nearly three months in 2001, Xu said. His mother was released from jail in July 2001, but has been under close surveillance ever since, he said. Since her passport was seized, it is impossible for her to travel.
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Last year, the consulate denied Xu's request to get his own passport renewed, citing his involvement in "activities abroad which are harmful to the country's security and interest." The consulate would not say whether the denial had anything to do with Falun Gong.
Xu, who can legally remain in the United States until his visa expires in 2004, is still trying to get a passport renewal.
"I'm worried that if I go to China to see my mother, I won't be able to return," he said.
Xu moved to the United States in 1997 to finish doctoral studies in computer science. He now lives in Mount Prospect with his wife and son, who is about a year old.
"It's a dream of mine to have my mother meet my son in person," he said. "So far, she's just seen pictures."
Xu hopes that publicizing stories like his mother's and bringing them to the attention of political leaders will spur China to relax its stance against Falun Gong. The Chicago City Council, the Illinois General Assembly and the U.S. Congress all adopted resolutions in 2002 condemning China's persecution of Falun Gong practitioners.
http://www.dailyherald.com/dupage/main_story.asp?intID=3763242